NEWBURYPORT — Mayor Sean Reardon’s second attempt to update the city’s capital improvement plan went for naught Monday when the City Council turned down his revised proposal in a 6-5 vote.
Each year, the mayor’s office presents a five-year outlook on the city’s anticipated capital spending needs. The plan, which accounts for any capital expense over $25,000, also includes reasons why money needs to be spent as well as descriptions of anticipated funding sources.
Last spring, Reardon presented a $154 million CIP only to see the council vote 5-5 with Ward 4 Councilor Ben Harman recusing himself to avoid the appearance of a professional conflict that arose due to one of the projects, leaving the matter undecided due to a tie vote.
The CIP was resubmitted to the council by Reardon on July 8, with the conflicted project excised so Harman could vote. As it turned out, Harman’s vote didn’t matter as Sharif Zeid, Connie Preston, Jim McCauley, Byron Lane, Mark Wright and Heath Granas voted against it.
Voting in the affirmative were Ed Cameron, Heather Shand, Jennie Donahue, Afroz Khan and Harman.
Granas voted in favor of Reardon’s original CIP, making him the only councilor to flip.
When asked what prompted him to vote differently the second time around, Granas said in a Tuesday statement he had more time to think about his CIP initial vote and came to the conclusion that the council do better than “simply removing a certain project and resubmitting the CIP to the council for a vote.”
Granas went on to acknowledge that all projects in the CIP were important but felt the administration needed to prioritize them.
“I think it would be helpful if the administration could share with us what their focus projects are for each fiscal year. Understandably, changes to priorities may change throughout the year, and letting councilors know what is more of a priority would be a welcomed change,” Granas said in a statement.
Reardon and Cameron declined to comment when asked about Granas’ vote.
Both versions of the CIP included the $25 million Indian Hill Reservoir interconnection pipeline, which is to be funded by a combination of sources, including the city’s water enterprise fund, along with state and federal grants. It also included Reardon’s proposed $7.7 million recreation center to be built on Low Street and funded through a combination of general fund debt, local grants and fundraising.
Granas said his change of heart regarding the CIP should not call into his question his support for the recreation center project.
“My vote in no way, shape, or form changes my feelings towards the need for 59 Low St. to be completed. I am and always will be a strong advocate for Newburyport Recreation and Youth Services to once and for all find a permanent home,” Granas said in a statement.
Last year, the City Council approved Reardon’s first CIP plan as mayor to the tune of $134 million.
“Nothing the council does surprises me anymore,” Reardon said in a statement Tuesday. “Unfortunately, the council chose to voice their displeasure with the CIP after it was submitted and not before. We have a lot of important projects in our pipeline. It doesn’t mean we will do all of them but having them out there for the community to see and be aware of is always my goal. Transparency comes first.”
Reardon said he had no plants to revise the CIP yet again, saying instead his office would “go back to the drawing board” and solicit more feedback from the community and council throughout the year. Meanwhile, his office would continue working off last year’s CIP.
Monday’s vote didn’t come quickly. During a tense and occasionally heated discussion, council members opposing the revised CIP repeatedly characterized it as “a list, not a planning document.”
“There’s a difference between a capital improvement list and a capital improvement plan. We cannot even get on the same page about what this plan should be. Capital is a gift or a curse we leave for the next generation,” said Zeid, who represents Ward 1.
“I want a prioritization of projects vis-à-vis each other,” she said.
Preston described her repeated efforts to communicate this request for clear prioritization of projects to the administration, and stated angrily, “I’ve gotten no response from anyone. Crickets. I’ll continue to vote no.”
Others echoed the demand for prioritization of projects.
Lane, who represents Wards 6, suggested a community meeting be held to allow residents to discuss the proposal and voice opinions regarding prioritizing the tasks facing the city.
Wright, another councilor at large, emphasized the need to focus on and prioritize the maintenance of city buildings and infrastructure.
In response to comments regarding the lack of communication and collaboration between the city administration and the council, Ward 5 Councilor McCauley said: “The authority of the council needs to be respected.”
Granas, in his Tuesday statement, said listening to the debate on the council floor gave him pause.
“I agreed with some of my colleagues that there should be some changes to how our city goes about prioritizing projects listed on the CIP,” Granas said.
Those in favor of the motion to accept the revised CIP were challenged by Zeid to justify their positions on the matter.
“I’m supporting this because it’s part of our job to have a CIP on the books,” Harman said. “Many similar CIPs have been voted on and approved in the past. We can improve this, and I believe we should be in the driver’s seat here. We need to move past this moment and set a course for the next budget process.
Early in the evening’s agenda, Reardon provided updates on several initiatives, including Wednesday’s community housing forum at the Senior/Community Center. Organizers will share the newly completed Housing Production Plan at Wednesday’s meeting.
Reardon reported that the three Brown School adaptive reuse proposals have been reviewed and all three applicants have been interviewed. Once applicants have responded to written interview questions, the advisory group will rank and score each proposal and then decide what to submit to the council, which will have the final say over which proposal is chosen.
Reardon indicated that the Lower Atkinson safety improvement project began ahead of schedule and is well underway. Street and sidewalk work continues along Johnson, Middle and Eagle streets, with Phillips Drive, Noble Street and Moseley Avenue scheduled for work in the fall.
The Cutter West End Fire Station should be substantially completed in the next few weeks, with move-in by the Fire Department anticipated later in October. A draft development agreement for the proposed 40B Housing project at the old Kmart site has been sent to the owners of Port Plaza; Reardon’s goal is to move forward with a plan that includes approximately 212 units, of which 25% would be designated as affordable.
Many of the other items on the council’s agenda were referred to committee without discussion, including the issue of salary increases for the mayor, the City Council and the School Committee.
A proposed bike-share initiative, which garnered numerous expressions of support from community members during the public comment portion of the meeting, is being taken up by the Community Services Committee.
Cameron addressed the ongoing controversy regarding the former library volunteer program, saying, “There’s been some progress on hiring an investigator for the library. We’ll have news in the next week or so.”